Le Mans 24 Hours Live Commentary and Updates
Minute-by-minute updates for the 2026 Le Mans 24 Hours
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Here is the reason why the safety car is out at Le Mans
Porsche has been unbeaten in the LMGT3 class since it was introduced at Le Mans in 2024. This year, the best of the two Manthey-entered 911 GT3 RS is running in seventh place after Boguslavskiy reported a puncture in the eighth hour, likely due to the debris from the Ford/Proton incident
While we wait for the race to go back to green, it's time for the traditional midnight firework show at Le Mans.
Hypercar order after hour 8
- 8 Toyota
- 20 BMW
- 12 Cadillac
- 38 Cadillac
- 50 Ferrari
- 101 Cadillac
- 51 Ferrari
- 7 Toyota
- 83 Ferrari
- 19 Genesis
- 17 Genesis
- 007 Aston
- 36 Alpine
- 35 Alpine
- 009 Aston
- 94 Peugeot
- 93 Peugeot
- 15 BMW
As the clock strikes 12am, the race remains neutralised under the safety car. Toyota leads overall, Duqueine is in front in LMP2, while Aston heads LMGT3
Buemi has been told that the 20 BMW and the 38 Cadillac did not change tyres during the last round of pitstops.
In LMGT3, it is Drudi (27 Aston) leading the race from Marschall (74 Ferrari), while Alesi (62 Mercedes) is up to third place
We are still waiting for the orders to stabilise under the safety car, but the 8 Toyota is currently leading from the 20 BMW and the two Jota Cadillacs. It will be a while before we go back to green.
The incident between Levorato and Castellacci is under investigation, which shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone. Marshals are currently clearing debris from the track
The 8 Toyota has rejoined the track, but there is a big queue forming at the pit exit as other cars come in
The timing of the safety car couldn't be worse for Toyota. After coming into the pits for emergency service, Buemi is having to wait for the light to turn green at the pit exit
Castellacci didn't lose the car on his own. There was contact with the 88 Ford of Levorato
The safety car is out on track for the first time. Reason? The 54 Ferrari GT3 of Castellacci is beached in the gravel
If you are wondering how the Ferraris are performing, Nielsen is running in sixth place in the 50 car. Calado is back up to seventh in the 50 Ferrari after team-mate Pier Guidi picked up a drive-through, while last year's winning 83 car is down in 10th
Bamber brings the 38 Cadillac into the pits. Buemi is back in the lead of the race, 28s clear of Rast. But the BMW should be able to go one lap further in this stint.
Will Stevens's stint is about to come to an end. He has the least amount of reusable energy among the leading hypercars.
While we're going on about soft versus mediums and the like, it is worth pointing out that Rast in the #20 is on the medium. WRT didn't follow the lead of the Caddys (the #101 WTR car included) by making the switch.
The 15 BMW is back out on track after the latest repairs, but Marciello is now five laps down on the leaders
And just to re-iterate my last point, Bamber has banged in fastest lap of the race with a 3m26.370s. That's a couple of tenths quicker than Buemi's mark from much earlier on.
We haven't talked about LMP2 a lot lately. The Duqueine car is still leading with Andlauer at the wheel, but its advantage has been trimmed down to 16s.
Both the soft-shod Jota Caddys are lapping faster than Buemi on his medium Michelins. Race leader Bamber in #38 is edging away from the Toyota driver and third-placed Stevens in #12 is edging towards him. What we shouldn't forget, though, is that Buemi's mediums are a stint old than the softs on the two Caddys.
Trouble for the 222 United Autosports, which has been rolled back into the garage with suspected mechanical problems. The car was already running last in class.
Stevens is down into the 3m26s on his set of softs - he's just set the #12 Caddy's fastest lap of the race.
The 15 BMW is back in the garage following Vanthoor's earlier incident with an LMP2 car. The nose section has been removed, as WRT mechanics begin repair work
The 38 Cadillac is going well on soft tyres. Bamber is leading the race by 27 seconds from Buemi, while Rast (20 BMW) is down to fourth behind Stevens.
And more importantly, the 8 Toyota did not take tyres at the stop, putting it ahead of the 20 BMW. However, both cars continue to trail the 38 Cadillac, which is on a different strategy.
The race-leading 20 BMW and the second-placed 8 Toyota have come into the pits at the same time. BMW's ability to go one lap longer on fuel means both cars are now on the same strategy.
LMGT3 order at HOUR 7
- 78 Lexus
- 87 Lexus
- 91 Manthey
- 27 Aston
- 33 Corvette
LMP2 order at Hour 7
- 30 Duqueine
- 37 CLX
- 343 Inter Europol
- 26 Vector
- 29 Forestier by Panis
Hypercar order at Hour 7
- 20 BMW
- 8 Toyota
- 38 Cadillac
- 12 Cadillac
- 50 Ferrari
Hour 7 update
It's 11pm and darkness has descended at Le Mans. The 20 BMW is still in front, but Frijns is under serious pressure from Buemi
An exciting battle for the lead is brewing up in Hypercar. Buemi has closed the gap to Frijns to just 2.5 seconds. The Toyota driver gained over a second on the last lap.
And now we have the 38 Cadillac in the pits. Much like with the sister 12 entry, Jota has opted to fit softs on the car. Bamber is back out on track, taking over the driving duties from Bourdais. Other teams would be monitoring the times of the two Cadillacs.
Softs going the #12 Caddy. It's the first car to make the transition as the temperatures drop. What can Will Stevens do on it - and are we going to see the everyone swapping over at each car's next stop?
The 12 Cadillac is in the pits, releasing the Toyota of Sebastien Buemi into third place.
It's worth noting that the 38 Cadillac has a healthy lead of almost 40 seconds at the front of the field. Bourdais pitted on lap 101, four laps before the 20 BMW and five before the 8 Toyota, which is now down in fourth behind the 12 Cadillac.
The #20 BMW and the #8 Toyota have as good as converged on their pitstop sequences because the German car is going a lap longer on the fuel. It is metronomically doing 13 laps, while its Japanese rival is for the most part doing 12. The question is why, because the rules are set up to equate stint length between the cars. Perhaps given what we saw in qualifying, the Toyota drivers are having to push that little bit hard to maintain a front-running pace.
The #3 DKR LMP2 car has been issued a drive-through penalty for causing a collision with the #15 BMW earlier in the hour
There is a lead change in LMGT3, with the two ASP Lexus cars now running ahead of the 27 Aston Martin. Umbrarescu is circulating five seconds clear of Van Rompuy
Driver change at Toyota. Hirakawa is out of the car, with Buemi strapping in in the #8 TR010 Hybrid. Buemi slots into third place behind Bourdais (38 Cadillac) and Frijns (20 BMW),
By: Autosport staff
